


auld lang syne

by honey_wheeler



Series: Happy New Year! [1]
Category: The Office (US)
Genre: Alternate Canon, Drunkenness, F/F, New Year's Eve
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-08-07
Updated: 2011-08-07
Packaged: 2017-10-22 08:11:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,073
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/235976
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/honey_wheeler/pseuds/honey_wheeler
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“So nothing but missionary with you either, huh?” Karen looks at her appraisingly and Pam snickers, giving in completely.</p>
            </blockquote>





	auld lang syne

**Author's Note:**

> Set on the New Year’s Eve following season 3. Pam and Karen compare notes.

Pam’s sitting on Jim’s couch. It’s New Year’s Eve and she’s on Jim’s couch in Jim’s house for Jim’s party with her fourth glass of Jim’s liquor and even over a year later it’s still weird. They’d tried. He’d brought her flowers and she’d worn nice dresses and they’d kissed goodnight on her front step and kissed good morning in her bed. But after a few months they’d realized it wasn’t going to work, not this time. He’d dated Karen too, but that hadn’t lasted much longer.

She’d been surprised to find she really liked Karen once she’d gotten over the awkwardness. If it bothers Jim to see them chatting and giggling and going out to lunch together, he never says so. They’ve cobbled together a friendship of sorts between the three of them. So it’s weird, but it’s not bad.

Pam swirls the liquid in her glass in lazy circles. Her tongue feels loose and careless. The sound of the party swells and ebbs in her ears and she shakes her head. She stands unsteadily and catches hold of Karen’s elbow.

“Let’s get out of this noise,” she says, making sure to pronounce her words carefully. Karen resists the tug on her arm.

“I’m lazy. Where are we going to go?”

“Upstairs,” Pam says, and tugs again. Karen groans but allows herself to be heaved off the couch. They make their way upstairs amid much giggling and banging into walls. Jim’s door flies open and bounces off the wall when they stagger into it. Karen leans into her and puts her finger to her mouth, hissing _shhhhh_ as they flop on to the bed.

“Did he ever bring you up here?” Karen asks as she leans her elbows back onto the worn and pilled bedspread. She picks at a thread with her fingers, unraveling it for several inches before letting go.

“Um. Yeah. Just a couple times.” Pam’s hands are pressed between her knees, almost like she’s praying.

“Didja do it?” Karen leers and walks her fingers across Pam’s thigh, laughing when Pam swats her hand away with a blush.

“Not here,” she admits. “Just, you know. Fooling around.”

“Yeah, me too,” Karen sighs. Pam looks sharply at her. They’ve never talked about this before. But then they’ve never gotten drunk together before and they’ve certainly never been drunk together in Jim’s bedroom before. Karen doesn’t seem to think it’s weird, though, and it’s hard for Pam to remember why she should when the room is swaying so pleasantly and Karen’s leg is warm and solid pressed against hers. She keeps counting the freckles across Karen’s nose. Thirteen. There are thirteen freckles.

“So who was kinkier, Roy or Jim?”

“Roy,” she answers automatically without thinking.

“Oh ho!” Karen sits up, delighted. Pam claps a hand over her mouth. This is why she should never drink.

“I didn’t mean that!”

“You did so.”

“Okay, I didn’t mean to _say_ it.”

“So nothing but missionary with you either, huh?” Karen looks at her appraisingly and Pam snickers, giving in completely.

“No. It was kind of sad. I think that was all he knew. And he always wanted to cuddle after and I just wanted to go to sleep.” Karen lets out a bark of laughter and holds up her fist for Pam to knock.

“Wait, wait,” she says, slapping excitedly at Pam’s leg. “Did he do this all the time?” She slings her head to the side, tossing her hair away from her eyes, and fixes Pam with a look she can only describe as smoldering. Pam’s giggles spill out of her mouth and she presses her fingers to her lips as she nods. It feels like a betrayal, but she can’t help it. She’d tried to talk to Kelly about it once, but Kelly couldn’t imagine anyone _not_ wanting to cuddle all night.

“He told me my skin was beautiful once,” Pam admits.

“Jesus, seriously? Your _skin_?” Pam nods and Karen rolls her eyes. “He’s such a girl. Oh hey, what about this one?” Karen props herself up on one hand to bring the other hand to Pam’s cheek, touching her fingers to Pam’s neck and her thumb to Pam’s jaw. She rubs her thumb back and forth a little, looking at Pam with exaggerated adoration. Pam laughs but her breath catches in her throat and she wonders what’s wrong with her.

“Yeah,” she agrees shakily. “That was kind of his standard move. And then the kiss.”

“Oh man, the kiss, right? How he’d always lick his lips first- ” She demonstrates and Pam follows the path of her tongue with her eyes.

“And he never moved his nose quite right, so it’d always mash into mine.”

“Yes!” Karen almost shouts, sitting up entirely. “Dude, how hard is it? This is all you have to do!” She grabs Pam’s head between her hands and tilts it to the side, tilting her own to the other. “Voila! Kissing ahoy, Halpert!” Pam giggles again and sways towards Karen. Their lips are close. She can feel Karen’s breath, warm against her skin, and then suddenly she can feel Karen’s tongue, soft and wet on her lips, in her mouth. She can taste her drink and feel her heart beating through the thin material of her shirt. Somehow they’re pressed together and she doesn’t remember it happening. Nor does she remember pushing her hand under Karen’s shirt to touch the skin of her stomach, but she must have because that’s where it is now.

There’s a clunk and a splash and they move apart, disoriented. Pam sees sensible brown shoes out of the corner of her eye. Jim’s glass is on the carpet, amber liquid puddling beneath it. She turns her head, looks up at him. He looks shocked. She doesn’t blame him, she feels kind of shocked herself. But still. She knows him well enough to see the obvious interest under the shock. She smiles a little. This should be weird too, but somehow it isn’t.

“What…what are you guys doing?” He’s trying hard to be casual but his voice catches like a rusty motor. He rubs the fabric of his shirt between his fingertips and shifts his weight from foot to foot. Pam looks back at Karen. Karen wrinkles her nose and grins.

“Comparing,” Karen tells him. “Care to join us?”

His only answer is the click of the lock as he shuts the door.


End file.
